Fastening device

ABSTRACT

A CLIP FOR RESILIENTLY ENGAGING TWO ADJACENT TUBES IN A PLATE FIN EVAPORATOR COIL ON A SELF-CONTAINED AIR CONDITIONING UNIT FOR SECURING FILTERS AND THERMOSTAT PROBES ADJACENT THE FACE OF THE EVAPORATOR.

Oct. 5, 1971 J. K. HEIDELBERGER 3,609,822

' FASTENING DEVICE Filed June 1, 1970 FIG. 4

INVENTOR. JOHN K. HEIDELBERGER BY 5M ATTORNEY 3,609,822 FASTENING DEVICE John K. Heidelberger, East Syracuse, N.Y., assignor to Carrier Corporation, Syracuse, N.Y. Filed June 1, 1970, Ser. No. 42,101 Int. Cl. A44b 21/00 U.S. C]. 24-73 PF 3 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A clip for resiliently engaging two adjacent tubes in a plate fin evaporator coil on a self-contained air conditioning unit for securing filters and thermostat probes adjacent the face of the evaporator.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In self-contained air conditioning units, usually referred to as window or through-the-wall air conditioners, a filter is ordinarily mounted adjacent the face of the coil to filter room air passing through the unit. A thermostat probe may also be mounted adjacent the face of the coil to sense the temperature of the air supplied to the coil for thermostatic control of the unit in response to room air temperature. The numerous clips and mechnited States Patent O1 ice anisms heretofore utilized to mount the thermostat probe and air filter have been relatively complicated and expensive.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a clip having a relatively narrow width for insertion between adjacent fins in a plate fin heat exchanger, the clip being adapted to engage adjacent tubes in the heat exchanger for retaining articles on the face of the heat exchanger. The clip comprises a body portion having spaced resilient leg portions formed thereon. The outer edges of the leg portions remote from the body portion are provided with opposed semicircular depressions for engagement with adjacent tubes in the heat exchanger. The outer edges of the leg portions on the end proximate the semicircular depressions converge to form a triangularly-shaped end on the clip for guiding the clip between adjacent tube rows. Means are provided on the clip for engaging the article to be secured on the face of the heat exchanger.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a front view of a window air conditioner having a portion of the grille, filter media and evaporator coil plate fins removed for clarity;

FIG. 2 is a partial sectional view of the evaporator coil with a thermostat probe and filter media secured thereto by the clips of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a view of a portion of the evaporator coil illustrating the plate fins having the clip of the present invention inserted therein; and

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of the clip illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to the drawings, there is illustrated a window air conditioner having a control panel 3 containing the controls for turning the air conditioner on and off, varying the fan speeds, controlling ventilation and ex haust and varying the thermostat setting of the unit. A discharge grille 5 is provided for discharging conditioned 3,609,822 Patented Oct. 5., 1971 air into the room served by the air conditioning unit. A plate fin evaporator coil 7 having refrigerant tubes 9 and plate fins 11 is provided for passing room air in heat exchange relation with refrigerant flowing through tubes 9 to cool and dehumidify the air prior to discharge of the air into the room through grille 5. A suitable filter 13 is mounted on the face of the evaporator coil 7 to filter the air passing through the coil. The filter may be of any suitable material such as open pore urethane foam. Clips 15 are provided for securing the filter material on the face of the evaporator coil 7. A thermostat probe 17 is also secured to the face of the evaporator coil by clips 15 to sense the temperature of the air entering the evaporator. The probe 17 is suitably connected to thermostat control means for cyling the air conditioning unit on and off to maintain the desired room temperature.

Referring to FIG. 4, the clip 15 which is formed of a suitable flexible material such as polypropylene is comprised of a body section 19 having leg portions 21 formed thereon. The leg portions are spaced from each other so that they may be displaced toward each other for insertion between adjacent tube rows. The outer edges of the leg portions 21 are provided with opposed depressions 23 for engagement with tubes 9. The outer edges 24 of the leg portions on the end of the clip adjacent depressions 23 converge to form a triangularly-shaped end on the clip for guiding the clip between adjacent tube rows and to act as a wedge to depress the leg portions of the clip inwardly and allow the clip to be inserted a sufficient distance so that the depressions 23 engage tubes 9. The clip is proportioned so that the dimension between the depressions 23 is greater than the distance between adjacent tube rows, the resiliency of the leg portions thereby assuring a positive engaging force between the clip and the tubes. The clip is provided with a headed portion 25 for cooperation with filter media 13 to secure the filter media on the face of the evaporator coil. The headed portion 25 also provides means for gripping the clip when removal of the clip is necessary to clean or replace the filter. The body portion of the clip is provided with an aperture 27 for receiving thermostat probe 17 engagement of the clip 15 with evaporator coil refrigerant thus 9 holding the thermostat probe 17 against the face of the evaporator coil.

The invention provides a simple and inexpensive clip for mounting articles on a coil which may be easily at tached to the coil on the assembly line or when replacing or cleaning the filter. Since the clip is adapted to fit between adjacent fins on the heat exchanger, the fins are not displaced or damaged thereby.

I claim:

1. A clip having a relatively narrow width for insertion between adjacent fins in a plate fin heat exchanger, the clip being adapted to engage adjacent tubes in the heat exchanger for retaining articles on the face of the heat exchanger, said clip comprising a body portion having leg portions formed thereon, the outer edges of the leg portions having opposed semicircular depressions formed therein for engagement with adjacent tubes in the heat exchanger, the outer edges of the leg portions adjacent said depressions converging from said depressions to form a triangularly-shaped end on said clip for guiding said clip between adjacent tube rows, and means formed on said body portion to engage the article to be retained on the face of the heat exchanger.

2. A clip according to claim 1 wherein said means to engage the article to be retained on the face of the heat exchanger includes an enlarged section formed on said 3 4 body to provide a headed portion thereon, said headed References Cited portion being adapted to engage filter media for holding the filter media against the face of the heat exchanger. UNITED STATES PATENTS 3. A clip according to claim 1 wherein the means for 63,385 4/ 1867 Harvey 8549 retaining articles on the face of the heat exchanger in- 5 2,034,080 3/1936 Bltzenbufger 8549UX eludes means formed within said body to receive an article to be held on the face of the heat exchanger, said FOREIGN PATENTS means being positioned in said body so as to hold said 821,902 10/1959 Great Britain 2473PF article against said heat exchanger When said depres- 1,267,508 6/1961 France 24'73SA sions are in engagement with adjacent tubes in the heat 10 exchanger, DONALD A. GRIFFIN, Primary Examiner 

